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Breaking the edges...

As the title suggests, I name this pic as breaking edges... Hoping to bring out the feel of showing the dramatic sky with the CBD area in shiloutte. Showing a high contrast against the feelings of odds. However i do observe there is a little of 'barrel distortion'? on the right side of the pic, the tallest buiulding seems arched, is it called barrel distortion? Would like to know if the composition for such a pic has worked for the eyes of many? The colours of this pic is it gd? As well should i capture it as a HDR? So as to bring out the sun rays even more?

Re: Breaking the edges...

your original picture in the thread is too small, i've replaced it with the larger image you linked to. actually i still think it's too small, you might want to consider an even bigger one, something between 600pixels to 800 pixels on the long side will be good, and since this is a panoramic crop, 800 pixels on the long side will be nice

Re: Breaking the edges...

Originally Posted by eikin

your original picture in the thread is too small, i've replaced it with the larger image you linked to. actually i still think it's too small, you might want to consider an even bigger one, something between 600pixels to 800 pixels on the long side will be good, and since this is a panoramic crop, 800 pixels on the long side will be nice

oh ty! but eikin, i had this size of 3871 X 1644 in photoshop. But how come i upload to flickr, than the image become so small? can enlighten me on the steps? TO make the pic bigger?

Re: Breaking the edges...

The idea of this shot is a good one. You have brought out the colours in the sky nicely. The cloud formations also add to the quality of this shot.

I would (personal preference) like the silhouetted skyline to be more distinct in the sense that... at one look, I know "hey! this is singapore". The easiest way would be through the silhouette of the esplanade. Which from this pic, I see as 2 lumps only. If there was a way to show its "spikes" in your shot, ah... that would make this shot "Uniquely Singapore".

That tilting inwards building can be corrected through "Distort: Lens Correction" inside Photoshop. And yes, it is something quite inherent when straight objects are placed near the edges on a wide lens...

Re: Breaking the edges...

Originally Posted by nemesis32

Just meter for the sky.. if need to, overexpose by 1/2 to 1 stop will do the trick.

I would love to do this very shot again... However so, i did not shoot it in RAW. Neither i think such a dramatic sky would be over my head again... Had no choice but to do it via the PP way. Anyway talking abt metering... I'm using a 400D and i do not have spot meter... Can i be enlightened on how should i go abt doing it?

Re: Breaking the edges...

1. to bring up the silhouettes, needs more contrast between sky and buildings. u may be too late, and the sun have gone too far down. maybe retake at an earlier time. HDR can't put a contrast when there is none. But u can of course experiment with it.

2. what is certain is the present pic can be improved by PP, if you know how to do it correctly. Good PP is one that is "natural", ie something within our natural visual experiences, and haloes are certainly unnatural. But you need to know blending and something I've called, "digitally simulated GND" to do this.

3. lens distortion correction is pretty straight forward in PS. Click around and you soon get the hang of it.

Re: Breaking the edges...

Originally Posted by espion

1. to bring up the silhouettes, needs more contrast between sky and buildings. u may be too late, and the sun have gone too far down. maybe retake at an earlier time. HDR can't put a contrast when there is none. But u can of course experiment with it.

2. what is certain is the present pic can be improved by PP, if you know how to do it correctly. Good PP is one that is "natural", ie something within our natural visual experiences, and haloes are certainly unnatural. But you need to know blending and something I've called, "digitally simulated GND" to do this.

3. lens distortion correction is pretty straight forward in PS. Click around and you soon get the hang of it.

Err espion, i would love to hear from you on your technique regarding the "digitally simulated GND" I tried all methods but none came out pleasing... pls help!

Re: Breaking the edges...

Originally Posted by nigel84

Err espion, i would love to hear from you on your technique regarding the "digitally simulated GND" I tried all methods but none came out pleasing... pls help!

he taught me how, you can either create a darken layer (multiply, darken, blurn etc) or a brightened layer (lighten, screen, dodge etc). After which, create a masking with a gradient from top to bottom or vice versa whichever you want to darken or brighten. This way you can 'underexpose' the sky yet retain the buildings in its original colour.

However since your horizon is jagged by the irregular outlined silhouette, you will find some of your sky nearer to the building brighter than that at the top. You can always use a brush on your masking layer to allow your simulated gnd to take effect.